lf a Man of Honour
and Virtue; when he ceases to be such he has lived too long, and while
he is such, it is of no Consequence to him how long he shall be so,
provided he is so to his Life's End.

T.

[Footnote 1: a Young]

* * * * *

No. 154. Monday, August 27, 1711. Steele.

'Nemo repente fuit turpissimus ...'

Juv.

_Mr_. SPECTATOR,

'You are frequent in the mention of Matters which concern the feminine
World, and take upon you to be very severe against Men upon all those
Occasions: But all this while I am afraid you have been very little
conversant with Women, or you would know the generality of them are
not so angry as you imagine at the general Vices [among [1]] us. I am
apt to believe (begging your Pardon) that you are still what I my self
was once, a queer modest Fellow; and therefore, for your Information,
shall give you a short Account of my self, and the Reasons why I was
forced to wench, drink, play, and do every thing which are necessary
to the Character of a Man of Wit and Pleasure, to be well with the
Ladies.

You are to know then that I was bred a Gentleman, and had the
finishing Part of my Education under a Man of great Probity, Wit, and
Learning, in one of our Universities. I will not deny but this made my
Behaviour and Mein bear in it a Figure of Thought rather than Action;
and a Man of a quite contrary Character, who never thought in his
Life, rallied me one Day upon it, and said, He believed I was still a
Virgin. There was a young Lady of Virtue present, and I was not
displeased to favour the Insinuation; but it had a quite contrary
Effect from what I expected. I was ever after treated with great
Coldness both by that Lady and all the rest of my Acquaintance. In a
very little time I never came into a Room but I could hear a Whisper,
Here comes the Maid: A Girl of Humour would on some [Occasion [2]]
say, Why, how do you know more than any of us? An Expression of that
kind was generally followed by a loud Laugh: In a word, for no other
Fault in the World than that they really thought me as innocent as
themselves, I became of no Consequence among them, and was received
always upon the Foot of a Jest. This made so strong an Impression upon
me, that I resolved to be as agreeable as the best of the Men who
laugh'd at me; but I observed i